Cold soldering iron.

[Da_zees]

Cold Soldering Iron -- better than a traditional iron?

I have never had my hands on one of these "cold irons" but from the day I started vaping This thing has been on my mind. I was always under the assumption this was how an atty worked. It wasn't until I started vaping That I found it was a much cruder concept riddled with stability and cleaning issues.

If anyone has one of these things just laying about and has the inclination I would love to see the results. Perhaps in the near future we will see manufacturers develop a more permanent solution than a thin wire coil.

 

[Bagazo]

This has been discussed before but I can't find the thread. One of the problems that came up was that the tip has to be shorted out. That is what makes it heat up when you place it on the copper pad on a circuit board.

I thought that a metal sleeve with a cup on the end would work since it would create the short needed and could hold a bit of SS mesh to drip on. I was not able to get my hands on one where I live so I never got around to trying.

I think it is a graphite heating element so it should be better than a coil. And since the juice is not touching the element, cleaning should be easy.

 

[Java_Az]

The cold heat soldering irons are complete garbage. They are for sure harder to work with then a real soldering iron. They will only work on small wires anything big and it will not heat up enough to melt the solder. I would advise against buying one , hell you would be better off getting a cheap heating one for less then 5 dollars then one of the cold heaters.

 

[NicksVap3]

The cold heat soldering irons are complete garbage. They are for sure harder to work with then a real soldering iron. They will only work on small wires anything big and it will not heat up enough to melt the solder. I would advise against buying one , hell you would be better off getting a cheap heating one for less then 5 dollars then one of the cold heaters.

they are junk. my dad bought one and gave me it, he said he couldnt figure it out. wanted to solder speaker wire to the wall mounted outlets. sat collecting dust never used.

but i think hes hinting to mod it into an atty

 

[Bagazo]

he said he couldnt figure it out.

I think that says alot. It doesn't work like a normal soldering iron. It only starts heating up when the two seperated parts of the tip are shorted out. I think the fact that it doesn't need to be on before soldering means it heats up rather fast.

Also it may work better as an atty than a soldering iron given the low temp needed to vape pg/vg compared to the higher temps needed to melt solder. Plus it's designed to work with batteries which makes it better than a regular soldering iron which needs to be plugged in.

 

[NicksVap3]

yeah, i figured it out, on very small wire. for 12g speaker wire, its useless. i have successfully used it, but rather use my butane one

 

[Bagazo]

I think slipping an SS tube over the tip with a couple holes for airflow. A bit of SS mesh midway so as not to contact the heating element and a plastic tip (so you don't burn your lips) should make a working drip vaporizer.

Wish I could get my hands on one but I am left trying to mod a ceramic element. Would be about the same design but I'm guessing the ColdHeat heats up faster and like I said it's already portable.

 

[Neon]

I have one and its a piece of crap ! The tips are made from some kind of carbon or graphite and chip super easy, plus its spilt on the end and both parts must touch the wire to make contact. What a piece of garbage ! Buy a cheap Weller ! Plus........it runs on batteries , and its SUPER hard on them......

Neon

 

[tonyorion]

I would have to agree: they are complete garbage. I got mine to work OK, but replacement tips cost a fortune and hard to grind down because the carbon is so brittle.

If you are looking for something portable where there is no power source, go to one of the pencil gas burners. They work like a charm!

 

[NicksVap3]

BUT how about modding this as an atty?

 

[tonyorion]

Not possible or highly improbable! The thing works by creating a short across a conductive surface (metal surface-wires, copper of a PCB, etc.).

As I remember, it uses a 9v battery but I have no idea what the actual voltage is across the electrode.

 

[Bagazo]

BUT how about modding this as an atty?

Sounds to me like everyone saying how bad this is is talking about using it as a soldering iron. If you have one try finding a metal tube (which will cause the short needed to have it heat up) that fits snuggly over the tip. Drip some juice into it, turn on and see if it makes vapor.

The reason I say it should work is because I used to use a 9v battery with a piece of pencil lead (graphite) to light cigarettes. Took only seconds to get hot enough to burn tobacco.

 

[NicksVap3]

The reason I say it should work is because I used to use a 9v battery with a piece of pencil lead (graphite) to light cigarettes. Took only seconds to get hot enough to burn tobacco.

heh... wonder where that trick was learned

when i go out to the shop ill grab mine and try it if no one has by then. wanted to go out today to get my sled spruced up a lil to sell it but not able to

 

[Bagazo]

heh... wonder where that trick was learned

Actually a guy that had done time told me that in the joint they would use two paper clips in a wall socket and a piece of pencil lead with a piece of toilet paper twisted around the middle to form a T. They would slap it across the paper clips and this would pop and set the TP on fire.

Having had electronics shop in HS I figured that a lower voltage would create a less violent heating of the graphite and just had to try it. After trying different voltages I ended up with a one inch piece of lead out of a No. 2 pencil with two wires around the end and a 9v battery. Worked great but after the novelty wore off I ended up going back to my Zippo. It was just easier.

 

[NicksVap3]

<-- waiting for someone to add a switch, leds and stuff it in a zippo case now lol

 

[Da_zees]

Sorry about my unclear ways.
Mod that cheap POS into an atty. The advantage would be to have a surface that is easy to clean once the carbon build up is creating to much resistance. Or the ability to scrap a wire mesh once it is tost.

 

[Da_zees]

I have a few burnt attys and some solid graphite sticks. I guess this is how im going to spend the afternoon.

 

[Bagazo]

I have a few burnt attys and some solid graphite sticks. I guess this is how im going to spend the afternoon.

The graphite might release some oily substance upon heating. This is the binder used in the fabrication. Once it gets red hot it should burn off. After that it should stop smoking.

 

[NatureBoy]

This product was a joke when it came out... here's an idea: don't burn yourself with a real one. Problem solved.

But yeah, using it as an atty? Funny idea... pretty fugly lookin PV if you ask me.

 

[alekos557]

As a soldering iron it sucks, as a mod, it's ok
ripped out the guts, leds, etc.
6v by way of 4 AA batts
hooked it up to a 5.0ohm carto works pretty good.
battery life who knows